The Serpent and the Wings of Night

The review

Oraya is human, the adopted daughter of the Nightborn vampire king, in a world built to kill people like her. Her only route to real power is the Kejari, a once-a-century tournament held by the goddess of death. To survive it, she has to make an alliance with Raihn, a ruthless vampire rival who may be her father's enemy and is certainly her best chance. It is the vampire romantasy that made Broadbent a BookTok name.

The tournament structure gives the book its spine. Each trial is a set piece, the competitors are deadly, and Oraya, the only human in the field, has to win on cunning and nerve. Broadbent writes action well and keeps the danger real; not everyone makes it through.

Raihn is a gentle giant with teeth: warm, funny and obviously hiding something big. The alliance-to-lovers arc is a slow, careful build, and the question of whether he can be trusted sits under every scene. Oraya's relationship with her controlling father adds a second, darker layer about what love and protection look like.

The heat: three peppers. There are open-door scenes, but they are fewer and less explicit than in the later books, and the romance stays in service of the story. Readers who want more spice tend to find it in the sequel.

Know before you start: it is book one of the Nightborn duet within the wider Crowns of Nyaxia series, and it ends on a cliffhanger that leads directly into The Ashes and the Star-Cursed King. We could not verify the author's own content-warning list online, so check the front matter. If you liked Fourth Wing's trials and want vampires instead of dragons, start here.

Read it if you want a tournament plot, vampires and a hero who is softer than he looks. Skip it if you want high spice from page one. The sequel is where many readers say the series truly catches fire, so plan to keep going if this one hooks you.